S'chol'nios
by T'Sura
Summary: Young Spock gets an interesting look at humanity through the eyes of a small boy from earth. However, there is something interesting about this boy that Spock cannot help but be curious about.
1. Chapter 1

S'chol'nios

In the corner of the school yard, Spock, the youngest son of the great Vulcan Ambassador Sarek, stood watching. To an observer, it would have appeared that Spock was merely gazing at the activity of the yard as the other children ate, ran, or practiced for the upcoming drills. The teens were throwing long knives in the air and catching them with almost impossible accuracy. The youngest children were running around, catching icy looks from the teacher who was on duty that day. It was true that he was watching, yes. But his eyes were focused on one particular boy; a human.

On Vulcan, humans were rare. Their presence often gave cause for scrutiny by the Vulcan children. This boy that Spock was watching was no exception. With his blonde hair and sky-blue eyes, he definitely stood out among his raven haired and black eyed classmates. This boy intrigued Spock; he wandered why the boy was sitting by himself studying their physics book with what appeared to be great earnest. Did the boy not remember there were three more hours until it was time to return home where he could then study? Spock began to walk toward the lone spot of shade where the boy sat under a _kasa_ tree. He noticed that the boy was hunched over, as though sleeping on his book. His breath shook each page as he read. He constantly rubbed his left eye with his balled fist.

"Do you require assistance?" Spock touched the boy's shoulder. To Spock's surprise, which he kept hidden of course, the boy started and jumped 1.3 feet in the air.

"Jeez! Don't you know it's rude to sneak up on people?" The human boy folded the page of the book he was reading and set it next to him. As he did this, he tried to calm his racing heart and rapid breath intake. Spock was confused.

"Were you having difficulty reading the required texts?" Spock asked the question bluntly, as all Vulcans do. The little human boy was unprepared for the question and thought that by the tone of Spock's voice that he was mocking him.

"No! I'm just tired! I understood every word of that stuff!" The boy was defensive. Spock thought for a moment and then apologized.

"I did not mean to question your reading comprehension abilities. What is your name? My name is Spock; I am the son of Sarek." Spock raised his hand in the Vulcan salute.

"My name is David Scott. I'm the…son of Jonathan." He tried to mimic Spock's salute, but his fingers couldn't seem to do it correctly. Spock sat down next to him and spread David's fingers so that the index and middle fingers were on one side and his ring finger and last finger were on the other side. David gave Spock a smile, but soon took it back as he remembered that it could not be reciprocated.

"David, may I ask you a question?" Spock asked the boy, who nodded. "Why is it that you read so that your eyes are so close to the manuscript?" Spock had noted that in several of his classes as well, David could be seen pressing his nose against the paper, his light lashes flicking gently across the pages.

David's eyes did not reach Spock's gaze. They wandered around aimlessly, until David put a finger in front of his eyes and focused them.

"Sorry about that. Well, to answer your question…" he paused, gathering a large breath of air. Whatever he was going to say, Spock could see that it was difficult for him to talk about. "…I, I can't see as well as Vulcans do. My glasses are hardly useful here because of the gravity change and there are no optometrists here because Vulcans always have perfect sight. So there is really no choice. It's not like you have "books on speech pad" or anything." Spock carefully noted the sarcasm in the boy's voice.

"David, I did not mean to insult you or make you defensive. If you wish, I can read the texts aloud to you to help you with your studies. You have only to ask." David nodded, but didn't say anything. As they stood up, the bell to signal the end of the break rang and the boys walked silently back to their classroom.

"David Scott, what is your theory as to why molecules have polarity?" The teacher stood expectantly, waiting, watching. David fumbled for a minute with his notes and then admitted defeat.

"I don't know." His head hung low. The teacher, T'Sar, spoke again.

"Perhaps you ought to read the textbook instead of relying on your classmates to answer the questions, Mr. Scott." T'Sar turned a disapproving eye upon him. David looked like he wanted to disappear. He shifted books around in his desk and then tried his hardest to look like he was paying close attention to every word. T'Sar turned and called on a Vulcan boy, Sofek, who supplied the standard Vulcan answer, right out of the textbook. As the rest of the class began a debate on molecular polarity and its effects on matter/antimatter displacement, David felt small drops of liquid fall from the corner of his eye. He was puzzled. The reprimand had not been harsh enough to make him cry, so what was the liquid? As he looked down at his notebook, he saw a growing puddle of blood. He did a double-take, causing it instead to run down the side of his face. He grabbed a handkerchief from his book bag and pressed it to his eye. Hopefully the cloth would help stop the bleeding. He put the soiled notebook papers away and then pulled out some fresh slices of paper. Only one hour to go.

The time went by slowly; David could feel the delicate balance of pressures in his eye slowly distort. He took a little bit of pressure off his eye by bringing the handkerchief off of the corner for a moment, but clapped it on again once the blood started to trickle. The children began packing up their bags and soon after, the release bell rang. David, who had packed up with one hand while holding the handkerchief with the other, filed out of the classroom quickly. The other children whispered behind their hands as they watched him go. Spock, who had studied to the last second of the debate, inserted his books into his pack and walked out, saying the formal good-bye to his teacher who said it back to him. He walked home and began his nightly studies.

David went home quickly as well. Since his home was only two short blocks from the school, he made it home in about ten minutes. He pulled out the access card from his back pocket and inserted it in the card slot in the gate. The gate was part of a high fence that ran around the perimeter of his parents' property. His sight, even at other times, made it impossible to do a full retina scan, so his parents had installed an alternative type of security. The card had been accepted by the system and had unlocked the gate. He pushed it open, pushed open the front door and went inside the generations-old house. He relished the cool temperature of the house in contrast to the sweltering heat outside.

David put down his book bag on the table in his room. Opening the bag, he pulled out the textbook he had struggled to read that the morning break and set it face-down on a machine in the corner of his room. There was a hinged lid on the machine, which he promptly flipped down on top of the book. Then he flipped a switch on the side of the machine and it softly began to hum.

"Kurtzweil Reading Edge. Please press key one to start scanning. To stop scanning, press key 5. Press key 2 to start reading." The synthesized voice's familiarity relaxed David. He picked up a keypad and pressed the largest key on the far left. The Kurtzweil made a chirping noise and then, a light moved across the glass screen under the lid. While the Kurtzweil was scanning, which took about a minute, David came back into the room with a patch of artificial skin over his left eye. It would grow over the eye and then separate so that there would be a new corner to his eye and an eyelid with lashes. He pressed "key 2" and the machine began to read the textbook aloud to him. He went and sat on his bed as it whirred and clicked.

"In the year 2273, Zephram Cochrane, the Terran man responsible for creating the first piece of warp-capable technology from the planet Terra (Earth) , began work on his shuttle, the Phoenix."

David closed his aching eyes and lay back on his pillows, listening. On his eyelids danced minute patterns of light created by the detachment of his retinas from the muscle walls at the back of his eyes. The darkness in the corners of his eyes, ever creeping closer, did not keep the lights aflame. They would disappear into the nothingness and then return in glory as they were born aloft by his ever-searching pupils. Many times, he would come home from school, his eyes bleeding as usual from the strain put on them to read constantly. Such days, which were occurring closer together as of late, were cause for the wearing of sleepshades, a piece of cloth contoured to the face to block light.

David opened his eyes and stood. He waited for the haze of light to vanish and then he walked over to the shelf were he kept some other adaptive technology like a notetaker and a few canes. On top of his favorite cane, there lay a pair of sleepshades. He picked them up and tied the elastic in a knot behind his head. He then walked back to his bed, counting the steps. He scanned the next page of the book and waited for it to begin reading. In the silence that came after a scan, he heard a knock at the door. He was puzzled. Anyone who gained access to the gate should have access to the door…


	2. Chapter 2

Annie Farasopoulos

Period 2

Feb. 7, 2006

_S'chol'nios_

Previously: In the silence that came after a scan, David heard a knock at the door. He was puzzled. Anyone who gained access to the gate should have access to the door…

At first, David thought he was hearing things. Then he wondered if something was wrong. He paused the Kurtzweil Reader, which was reading to him mid-sentence, and went out to the large hallway. The knock came again, this time a few decibels louder. David decided that there was no harm in opening the door. He slipped his sleepshades down from his eyes so that they hung loosely around his neck and pulled open the door. His eyes, accustomed to the darkness of the sleepshades shut instantly as the light of Vulcan's harsh sun T'Ruhk came in the space left by the door. He heard a voice as he squinted his eyes.

"David? It is Spock. Are you alright?"

David opened one eye and waved Spock into the house. He shut the door quickly. He sighed.

"Yes, Spock. I'm fine." Since the door was shut, he opened the other eye that had been closed. He looked Spock over. "Would you like something to drink?"

Spock folded his hands and put them behind his back. "No thank you, David. I came to ask you something. I wished to know if you would perhaps like to come to my house and study. You could join us for the third meal and then you could take the flitter home." Spock waited for David's response patiently.

It only took David a moment to think about it. "Sure. Thanks for offering. I'm going to write my parents a quick note." He turned to go into the kitchen to get a pen and pencil, but Spock put a hand on his shoulder and turned him around, while simultaneously handing him a small data-padd. David turned it on and read the message that had been written in its files.

"Nice. Okay, I'll set this on the table and then we'll go." David ran into the dining room and set it on the stone table that had been there for generations before David was even born.

David grabbed a coat from his room and the book from on top of the Kurtzweil Reader. He shut it off gently and then closed the lid softly. He was very careful with that machine; if something were to happen to it he would never be able to catch up to the other students unless he hired a reader.

Spock was waiting outside and as David grabbed the access card from the hook where his cane hung he motioned for him to come. David shut the door and went with Spock to the small flitter. Spock got into the pilot's seat and David set his books on the floor in the back and climbed in on Spock's right. Spock laid in the coordinates for his house and the flitter powered up and began to move forward onto the street, flying swiftly above the dusty road. In a few minutes they had reached Spock's home.

They powered off the flitter and grabbed their books and things and headed for the door. Spock pushed it open and led the way for David. The door closed on its own.

The two boys headed into a long hallway. Along the way, they encountered a blonde haired human lady, who smiled a David and smoothed Spock's hair. Spock touched two fingers to hers. Amanda grinned.

"Just in case Spock didn't tell you, I'm Amanda. I'm Spock's mother. I assume you are David." David nodded shyly.

Amanda smiled at the two boys and then went about what she had been doing as they walked down the hall. Spock's room was the last on the right. David noticed there was light coming from several of the other rooms; the one across from Spock's on the left side of the hallway, and a door which they had already passed.

"Spock? Who lives in those rooms?" David asked Spock quietly in case the occupants were doing important work. Spock turned and looked.

He explained quietly to David, "My father's study is across from us. We must be careful not to disturb him. As for the room behind us on the left, that is my brother's room. "

David, being a typical human boy, was interested in the latter half of that sentence. "I didn't know you had a brother, Spock. Does he attend school with us?"

Spock shook his head. "No, he is older. He attends a school in Gol. He is learning to perfect his logic. There is a short break, so he came here. When there are breaks at his school, you can either stay to meditate in the monastery or you can come back in two weeks ready to learn again. My brother has been attending this particular school for two years."

David's face grew somber as his imagination spun a picture of this "school of logic".

"What's his name, Spock? How old is he?" David and Spock went into Spock's room and closed the door.

"His name is Sybok and his is 21 Terran years of age. We may talk about him later, but we must study now. I am afraid that we have wasted much time. Would you like to start with Chemistry or with Physics?" Spock laid his books out on a large desk in the corner of his room.

"Ugh. Neither." David made a face. "But if you want me to pick the lesser of two evils, I'll take physics."

Three hours later, Spock and David heard Amanda knock at the door.

"It's time for dinner, boys." They closed their books to the sound of her dying footsteps.


	3. Chapter 3

David and Spock put their schoolbooks in their book bags and tidied up a bit. David put his things in a small pile next to the door and with that, Spock led the way down the long winding hallway to the meal place.

As they entered, David pulled out a pair of smaller glasses with an ocular piece attached at the hinge. He pulled the ocular piece down and enjoyed the effects; bright light which allowed him to see better in the dining room's dim light. However, Spock bade him to take it off.

"It is not appropriate, David. We will light the _asenoi_ and it will provide sufficient light. If you require it after the lighting, I believe then it would be suitable."

Reluctantly, David pulled it off, frowning. He was not sure if this mysterious _asenoi_ would give off enough light for him to be able to see well enough. His doubts were thrown off for a moment as Spock's brother and father came into the room.

Spock's father, Sarek, took his appointed place at the head of the table. David squinted a little to get a look at him. He looked very intimidating to the small boy. Sarek was a young man for a Vulcan, considering that they often live to over 200 years of age and he would be approaching his sixtieth birthday soon. His angular face and sharp brown made him look quite young and his hair had been cut in the traditional Vulcan style. His delicately pointed ears and up slanted eyebrows gave the air of intelligence and there was a sense of power about him.

Spock's brother could not have been any different. A mere adolescent according to the Vulcans, the boy was strong and exuded the same powerful sense that David had associated with Sarek. There were several things different about the young man that David couldn't help but notice. Sybok's hair was much longer than either Sarek's or Spock's and it was not as neatly combed. His face had the same shape as Sarek's but he was more relaxed and his frown was not as great as Sarek's. Sybok's eyes were hauntingly intense and it seemed to David as though the older boy was searching his soul. David, now feeling a little uncomfortable, relaxed his eyes and spoke quietly with Spock as Sarek lit the _asenoi_. True to Spock's word, the light was quite sufficient for even David's needs. He glanced at the fire-pot where the _asenoi_ created a pulsing light pattern. It changed colors randomly, going first from a deep red to a bronze, to yellow, and then back to the red.

Amanda brought in the evening meal and they began the third meal in comfortable silence.


	4. Chapter 4

S'chol'nios

Previously: True to Spock's word, the light was quite sufficient for even David's needs. He glanced at the fire-pot where the _asenoi_ created a pulsing light pattern. It changed colors randomly, going first from a deep red to a bronze, to yellow, and then back to red.

David turned at a noise in the doorway. Amanda stood there, a tray of several different dishes in her hands. Sarek stood and took the dishes off the tray, setting them down randomly on the table and said some words in Vulcan, but David could only catch a few words like "eat" and "hold". Sarek then pointed to some tapered sticks that were next to David's elbow. Amanda sat and then spoke.

"Sarek, do you recall how long it took for me to fully understand Vulcan speech? I am willing to bet that David has only been on Vulcan a short time. I believe it would be more courteous to speak in Standard." Amanda patted David's hand over the table as if to say, _don't worry_.

Sarek conceded to his wife's logic. "I did not know you had been here for such a short time. This was a misunderstanding on my part. The tapered sticks by your elbow are called jom'ir. They are the primary utensil used for the consumption of Vulcan meals. However, since you have only been planetside for a short while, I am sure we could replicate a fork for you."

David said shyly, "Yes, sir. I believe I will use the jom'ir, sir." He picked the jom'ir up and held them like chopsticks. He looked at Spock's hand and realized that the Vulcans did not hold them like the Asians did on Terra. The delicate jom'ir seemed to have a small notch where it slid in-between different fingers and the pinky finger had a little hollow carved out for it. Once David held the jom'ir in the correct position, he dared not let go. He glanced up at Amanda, who still had hers still so that he could get a good look at them. She gave him an encouraging smile and held her jom'ir for him to see until he felt he was ready to try eating with them. He scooped at the food with the jom'ir and managed to catch a morsel, quickly bringing it to his mouth with a small smile and a chuckle. Sybok allowed David a small smile, something which stunned him. He had NEVER seen a Vulcan smile, except for little children who apparently did not know any better. But the smile had vanished when he looked back and Sybok's face was covered by his hair as he concentrated on eating. David continued to consign small portions of food to his mouth until the dish was gone. He set the jom'ir down, praying that there was nothing else to eat for fear that he would have to hold them correctly again.


End file.
